An attacking allrounder, Thisara Perera began his schooling at St Anthony's, Wattala, before accepting a scholarship to join St Joseph's College. It turned out to be a productive move as he teamed up with Angelo Mathews and produced many noteworthy performances in the thriving schools cricket scene. Perera played a key role in helping his school break the hoodoo in the Battle of the Saints (against St Peters College) that lasted more than 35 years. Perera received his maiden national call-up during Sri Lanka's tour of India in 2009 as an emergency replacement, ironically, for Mathews. It quickly led to an IPL contract when he was bought by Chennai Super Kings for $50,000. Perera is fast establishing himself as one of Sri Lanka's key 'impact' players, capable of clearing the ropes and breaking partnerships with his nippy seam bowling. During the home one-dayers against Pakistan in 2012, he became the fourth Sri Lankan bowler to take a hat-trick in ODIs.Cricinfo Staff June 2012